Wellsworth
* North Western Railway |lines= * The Main Line * Brendam Branch Line |no_of_platforms= * 3 * 2 |previous=Crosby |next=Maron Suddery }} Wellsworth is a town located near Sodor's south coast, at the northern end of a peninsula. It is the start of Edward's Branch Line, so the station is commonly called Edward's Station. History ''The Railway Series The name is probably derived from a well, now dry, in the grounds of the Old Nunnery. Legend has it that St. Tibba, or it may have been Saint Ebba, in the 7th Century, had a dream. As a result of it she caused the well to be dug here, and with its water effected many remarkable cures. A Nunnery was established here in 1160. The Poor Clares, an Order of Catholic Nuns, settled there sometime after 1286 and built their hospital around the well. Though King Henry VIII nominally suppressed the Order in 1534, the Sudrian interpretation of the Act secured that St Tibba’s Hospital remained and expanded as need arose. Shortly before 1987, it was rebuilt on a new site and has deservedly the highest reputation of any hospital on the Island. Wellsworth is a pleasant seaside town. The air here is reputedly pure and bracing. There is a Convalescent Home, and many doctors recommend a period spent here to patients suffering from respiratory ailments. The Fat Controller and his family live here in a mansion called Topham Hall, located in the outskirts of the town. Crocks Scrap Yard is located here. The line from Wellsworth to Brendam is one of Sodor's oldest and was built in 1870 as part of the Wellsworth and Suddery Railway, which was later extended to Knapford in 1912 to connect with the Tidmouth, Knapford and Elsbridge Light Railway before becoming part of the North Western Railway in 1915. Wellsworth became a station on the Main Line, while the line to Brendam was downgraded to a branch line, with the junction located slightly east of the station. At some point, Edward was giving the branch line, resulting in the station being nicknamed Edward's Station. A goods yard, commonly known as Edward's Yard, is located here. It consists of several sidings, a turntable and a two-berth engine shed, with a coal hopper nearby. A breakdown train is kept here. As Wellsworth is some 280 ft below Maron, engines based here serve as bankers for trains going up Gordon's Hill. Thomas & Friends Appearances Trivia * Wellsworth is likely named after Elsworth, where the Rev. W. Awdry was Rector between 1946-53. In merchandising it is occasionally misspelt as "Ellsworth". * In the TV series, the express has commonly stopped at Wellsworth, however according to the Awdry writings, the express is not meant to stop at Wellsworth. * In the eighteenth series episode Duck and the Slip Coaches, the station appeared to represent a station on the Great Western Railway in Duck's flashback. * In both the PC game Railway Adventures and the eleventh series episode, Edward and the Mail, Wellsworth was referred to as a Post Depot. This idea seems to be carried onto the later series when it returned in CGI. * Wellsworth station has had numerous modifications throughout the years: ** Series 1-12: *** The shunting yard's size and layout constantly changed. ** Series 2: *** The station pilot siding disappeared. ** Series 3 (only): *** The station gained an extra large shunting yard behind it. It was later reused as the yard from Oliver Owns Up. ** Day of the Diesels: *** The green metal bridge nearby became larger and recieved a new design. *** A red brick road bridge was added near the station. *** The shunting yard layout became one single siding with three ends with no more turntables. *** A large warehouse was added nearby. *** The tracks entering the station changed from straight to curved. *** The road bridge now has rails running across it. ** Series 17-18: *** The asphalt in the yard was occasionally replaced with grass before becoming consistent the following series. ** Series 21: *** The three ended shunting siding becomes a two ended siding and gains a two berth shed on it. Merchandise * ERTL (discontinued) * Wooden Railway (discontinued) * Take-Along (discontinued) * Motor Road and Rail (discontinued) * TrackMaster * Brio (discontinued) * LEGO (discontinued) * Mega Bloks * Bachmann (signal box only) * Lionel (discontinued) * Sui Sui Oekaki (discontinued) de:Wellsworth es:Wellsworth he:ולזוורת' pl:Wellsworth ru:Веллсворт Category:Landmarks Category:Inhabited areas Category:Stations Category:North Western Railway Category:The Main Line Category:Edward's Branch Line